What’s the problem with Whopper virgins?

Look, i know you could be forgiven for thinking this blog is actually CPB’s most brilliant pr idea ever, but really, what is the fuss about whopper virgins about?

Let me lay down the facts.  cpb went to remoter parts of the world and asked people who had never tasted a whopper their opinion of it was.   that is a great idea.  get undeniably honest reactions from unimpeachably independent sources.

i’m being slightly facetious of course.  i know what the problem is.  the ads upset some people by showing the truth that the vast majority of the world lives in abject not-ready-for-primetime poverty.  and juxtaposing this poverty with what could be construed as a symbol of american consumerist excess: the  BK whopper.

that’s how they see it.  they feel sympathy for people being treated to free burgers.

but you know who isn’t complaining?  the whopper virgins.  because the cold reality is that the whopper is a fine burger in any language.  foreign peasants  have taste buds too.  and it was probably a fun day when the funny americans came to their village and asked their opinion of the strange food.   they’ll be talking about that for years.

you know who the complainers should be worried about?  the people in the developing world that didn’t get a whopper.  and will never get a whopper.  and who will have very short and very hard whopper-free lives and probably needlessly die from malaria or some other easily treatable ailment.  and leave hungry and scared orphans behind them.

i can guarantee there’ll be no online chatter or outcry about that though.

Burger King gives McDonalds a digital whoppin’

For several years now Burger King, once one of the worst accounts in advertising, has been exemplary in its use and exploitation of new media. Or as we call it: media.

In partnership with agency Crispin Porter Bogusky, Burger King has dived deep, doing everything from branded content to (truly) viral efforts as well as some brilliant advertising for the Whopper. If you’ve eaten their fries lately you’ll have noticed that they, quite rightly, even treat the fry box as a medium. Giving the diner information and matey chat. Everyone could learn a lot from what these guys have done.

We were talking about this recently with someone whose opinion we value highly who happens to work at Google. And he made the point that BK’s experience in the digital area qualifies as a legitimate asset at this point. It’s worth money and is a competitive edge. And conversely McDonalds’ much more tentative steps in the digital arena will someday bite it on the rear end.

Similarly, agencies that have been hesitant about embracing the possibilities of digital/online will, and are, having a rude awakening. Because actual experience is golden here. You can read all the blogs and Malcolm Gladwell and Seth Godin books in the world and go to all the conferences but nothing subsitutes for doing something. And the great thing is that, unlike traditional advertising, it doesn’t necessarily cost a fortune to try something in digital land.

If you look at the BK work, a traditional TV mass marketer might criticize it as being “all over the place”. And it is. CPB is constantly launching new initiatives and ideas whose commonality is often merely tone. They are having fun. And they know from experience that the best way to approach the online world is to try a lot of things and see what sticks. Because nobody, not even CPB, can be sure of that. It’s a bit like the record industry model. Throw out a bunch of stuff and something will hit.

It’s a much more free-form approach. And one that understandably would make some marketers nervous. Not BK. What’s the biblical quotation? As ye sow so shall ye reap. Yup.